


Coming Back

by Warp5Complex_Archivist



Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-09-24
Updated: 2008-09-24
Packaged: 2018-08-16 05:24:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8088871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warp5Complex_Archivist/pseuds/Warp5Complex_Archivist
Summary: Captain Archer wakes up for the worst day of his life - the day he dies...or does he? Meanwhile, the crew of Enterprise must deal with aliens who can read their thoughts at will.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Kylie Lee, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Warp 5 Complex](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Warp_5_Complex), the software of which ceased to be maintained and created a security hazard. To make future maintenance and archive growth easier, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but I may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Warp 5 Complex collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/Warp5Complex).

  
Author's notes: This story is AU and contains the (temporary) death of a major canon character. Don't worry, he's not really dead. This story was beta-ed by LadyhawkeLegend.  


* * *

Had Captain Jonathan Archer known that this would be the day when he would die, he probably would have stayed in bed. In all respects but one, it had been a normal day. Archer had slept well that night, lured to sleep by the almost imperceptible shaking of a starship at warp speed. Enterprise NX-01 was the first human built starship of her kind. She was capable of moving at speeds up to warp five and was the first human starship capable of any kind of serious space travel. Humanity had high hopes for the Enterprise and her mission of seeking out new life and new civilizations. Archer had woken up reluctantly to the shrilling of his alarm clock in time for his shift, wishing the whole time for another hour of sleep. It was so relaxing in bedâ€¦ Archer thought tiredly. He showered with cold water in an attempt to get himself out of his sleepy haze. Still sleepy, Archer haphazardly put some shampoo in his short brown hair as he thought about all he had to do today. After a short and cold shower, Archer headed for some breakfast.

As usual, Captain Archer had breakfast in the Captainâ€™s mess with Charles Tucker III, his best friend and chief engineer on Enterprise whom everyone called â€œTripâ€, and Tâ€™Pol, his Vulcan science officer and second-in-command. The rest of the morning had been filled with more monotony as Archer sat restlessly in the Captainâ€™s chair on the bridge. The only thing that seemed wrong about his day was that Captain Archer had felt an unplaceable, unshakeable feeling that something was going to happen. He thought about mentioning it to Tâ€™Pol, but he knew she would just arch her eyebrow as she always did and tell him that humans had no such thing as a sixth sense and that to feel that way was illogical. And today, he just didnâ€™t feel like listening to Tâ€™Pol telling him for the ten thousandth time that humans were illogical.

So far, it had been a calm day on the bridge. His only excitement had been signing a few forms detailing some new security procedures that Malcolm Reed, his British tactical officer and head of security wanted to institute on Enterprise. It was Crewman Olivia Edwards, the youngest member of the security team, who brought him the reports to sign. When she first came onto the bridge, Archer wasnâ€™t entirely sure who she was. She seemed so young and was somewhat shorter than most of the crew. Her shoulder length brown hair was so shiny that it caught his attention. Still, she seemed out of place among all the older and more experienced crewmen on the bridge. But, Archer thought proudly, she must be good at what she does if sheâ€™s on Enterprise. Only the best and the brightest people were recruited to serve on Enterprise and undoubtedly, sheâ€™s no exception.

As Olivia waited for Captain Archer to sign the security change forms, he noticed her looking at the viewscreen, which currently showed stars zooming past as Enterprise headed onto her next destination. She had sort of a wide eyed, satisfied look. As Archer watched her out of the corner of his eye, he saw her grin broadly. He finished signing the forms in triplicate, looked up, and pretended to see Oliviaâ€™s reaction to the viewscreen for the first time. Archer gave a wry grin and said, â€œWhatâ€™s so funny, Crewman?â€

Olivia turned from the viewscreen and said, â€œOh, nothing, sir.â€ Archer grinned in spite of himself.

â€œCâ€™mon Crewman. I saw you smiling. Whatâ€™s up?â€ She blushed and grinned again, this time rather sheepishly.

â€œWell, itâ€™s really nothing sir. I just think itâ€™s all so amazing.â€ Archer looked at her confused.

â€œWhatâ€™s amazing?â€ he asked as he handed her back the security change forms. Olivia took them and gestured broadly with her free hand.

â€œAll of it!â€ she said with a look of extreme fascination, â€œThereâ€™s so much to see and weâ€™ve only scratched the surface! I dunno.â€ she muttered now looking embarrassed that the bridge crew was all staring at her, â€œI just think thatâ€™s exciting.â€

Archer grinned. â€œYouâ€™re right Crewman, that is exciting. And thatâ€™s why weâ€™re here.â€ She smiled happily at Captain Archer and said, â€œThanks sir. Iâ€™ll send these new reports out right away.â€ She flashed another smile and was gone in the turbolift. Archer couldnâ€™t ever recall talking with Olivia so much before, and he made a mental note to stop and talk to her further sometime. Shortly after she left, everything went wrong.

â€œIâ€™m picking up a ship about 3000 kilometers away, origin unknown.â€ Tâ€™Pol said. Tâ€™Polâ€™s short brown hair shifted and showed clearly her pointed Vulcan ears which were perked and listening carefully to what was unfolding on the bridge.

â€œBring it up on the view screen.â€ said Archer, his senses going into red alert. He knew without knowing how he knew that this was what he had been feeling bad about all day. Ensign Hoshi Sato, the shipâ€™s Japanese linguist already had her hand up to the earpiece in her ear, listening for any communications that the ship might be trying to send to Enterprise. Tâ€™Pol magnified the image on the viewscreen. The ship that appeared was black, approximately the same size as Enterprise, and gave off the distinct impression that its sole purpose was to take down any ship that got in its way. â€œHoshi.â€ Archer said warily, â€œHail them.â€

â€œYes, sir.â€ she said and she pushed buttons all over the console, sending out Enterpriseâ€™s generic â€œwe mean you no harm weâ€™re only explorersâ€ message that seemed not to be believed by many of the races they encountered; apparently no one â€œjust exploredâ€ these days. Oh well, Archer sighed mentally. A few seconds after Hoshi transmitted Enterpriseâ€™s message, they received a message back. A face that looked most closely like a Gila monster appeared on screen. It said, â€œYou will surrender and be boarded or you will be destroyed.â€ Archer tensed in his seat. Didnâ€™t anyone ever just talk? He wondered silently.

â€œRed alert.â€ he barked, and the bridge around came to life. The red lights flashed and he could see the visible tensing of the bodies around him â€“ well, all except for Tâ€™Pol. Being tense is a human thing, he thought with a stab of annoyance.

The flashing lights cast an eerie, blood red hue over the bridge as Enterprise charged her own weapons and waited for the fight to begin. Enterprise had hailed the enemy ship several more times to no avail and now began the game of waiting for the enemy to make the first move. Personally, Archer hoped that the Gila monster looking aliens would back down, but knew that the chances of the other ship doing so were slim. Malcolm said suddenly, â€œIâ€™m picking up an odd energy signature on C Deckâ€¦ theyâ€™re beaming in near the Computer Core!â€ Archerâ€™s anger flared. A firefight between two ships was one thing, but now they were dragging this onto his ship and it was personal. His own people were in danger and he had a duty to protect them all. Archer punched the comm button on his chair.

â€œSecurity team to Deck C!â€ he barked, all business. â€œMalcolm, youâ€™re with me. Tâ€™Pol, you have the bridge.â€ Ignoring Tâ€™Polâ€™s objections, Archer and Malcolm boarded the turbolift and went straight to engineering. Dashing past Trip, Malcolm and Archer both grabbed phasers and jogged to C Deck.

They arrived to find the MACOs already in a heated battle with the lizard looking men. The lizards seemed to fire something like a bullet, but it packed more of a wallop than a traditional Earth bullet. When fired, their guns gave a bright, momentarily blinding flash. The hallway was a cacophony of flashes, bangs, and tension. Bullets were ricocheting off the bulk heads and the lizards were slowly gaining ground. â€œFall back and regroup!â€ Major Hayes yelled. For a moment, Archer watched the gray camouflaged MACOs and blue uniformed security members and wondered how the situation could have come to this so quickly. Major Hayes quickly and efficiently moved his men back down the corridor as the barrage of bullets continued. The flashes from the guns glinted off of Major Hayes gelled brown hair. Major Hayes was a man who knew when he was beat. His field experience served him well and he was smart enough not to let his own pride cause his team unnecessary lives. While the MACOs and the security team were carefully backing out, Archer noted that there apparently hadnâ€™t been any injuries yet. They were nothing if not careful. Looking at one of the security members near the back, Archer realized with a thrill that it was the Crewman from the bridge that morning.

She seemed to be in her element. She was firing with careful aim and was totally absorbed in her task at hand. She backed up slowly and was soon on the other side of the hallway from Archer and Malcolm. Olivia fired at one of the lizard men and let a smile of triumph play on her lips as she knew that she would hit her mark â€“ that is, until the lizard disappeared. One minute it was there, and the next it was not and Archer saw Olivia scrunch her face up in confusion, wearing a look that undoubtedly mirrored the looks on his and Malcolmâ€™s faces. Seconds later, Archer heard a strange noise behind him and in an instant, Malcolm was on the floor.

The lizard had transported and reappeared right behind them. With one hit to the back of the head, Malcolm was laid flat out on the deck, a sizable lump already forming, hidden by his short brown hair. The lizard towered over Archer hissing menacingly. If Archer knew that he would have been heard if he cried out, he probably would have, but in the chaos nothing could be heard clearly. A hit to the head, a blinding white pain, and Archer was lying beside Malcolm on the floor. Archer heard the lizardâ€™s gun discharge and waited to feel the sickening pain of a bullet burying itself in his flesh, but he didnâ€™t. He felt something hit the floor next to him, opened his eyes with a groan and realized it was Olivia. Blood blossomed from her stomach and she was clutching her wound in agony. A shadow fell over him, and Archer knew he was next. Why didnâ€™t we see this coming? He wondered silently. The lizard aimed for Archerâ€™s head and pulled the trigger.

Once again Archer waited for the pain of a bullet but felt nothing. Something heavy landed on top of him and realized that Olivia had thrown herself in front of the bullet meant for him! Her body was thrust aside as the lizard lifted Archer bodily off the floor. He could see Malcolm was out for the count on the floor and Olivia was now also bleeding heavily from around her hip. The lizard thrust the cold, gray muzzle of his gun into Archerâ€™s chest and fired.

The pain was intense and Archer gasped at the rush of adrenaline. He felt oddly detached from himself as he fell to the floor in a heap. His eyes wide open and his mind oddly clear, Archer watched as Olivia fumbled with her phaser, her face a study in pain, and struck the lizard three times as the lizard hit her once again in the chest. Still barely conscious, Olivia crawled over to him and pressed her hands over his wound before losing the battle with consciousness and collapsing on top of him.

The next thing Archer knew, he was in sickbay. He awoke in the surgical suite just as Doctor Phlox, a Denobulan and Enterpriseâ€™s Chief Medical Officer, was beginning to perform surgery on him. â€œThe Crewman?â€ Archer asked huskily as he looked up into Phloxâ€™s serious blue eyes. â€œIs she alright?â€ Archer attempted to sit up and look around, but regretted it as soon as his vision began swimming. He felt Phloxâ€™s strong hands pushing him back onto the biobed and he tasted a strong metallic tang as he coughed up a mouth full of blood. Archer weakly spit the blood out of his mouth. He could feel it dribbling down his chin.

Phlox grimaced at the realization that Captain Archer was apparently bleeding heavily internally. Phlox carefully wiped the blood from Archerâ€™s mouth and face before hurriedly finishing his preparations for surgery. â€œIs she alright, Phlox?â€ Archer asked desperately.

â€œCaptain.â€ Phlox chided with a worried look, â€œSave your breath. Iâ€™m sorry, I did everything I could, but Oliviaâ€™s wounds were just too extensive. She died only a few minutes ago. Now, Iâ€™m going to put you to sleep so we can fix you up.â€ Archer sighed at the thought that at least now he knew the Crewmanâ€™s name. Archer felt a surge of pain, his eyes rolled back in his head, and he lost consciousness as his body arched off the biobed. Dimly, somewhere in the haze between semi-unconsciousness and ludicity, he heard a monitor shriek and he heard Phlox yell, â€œHeâ€™s flatlining! Give me the cortical stimulator!â€ And then, he knew no more.

An hour later, Phlox emerged out of the surgical suite to see Trip and Tâ€™Pol waiting in sickbay. Trip was sitting restlessly on a biobed with his head in his hands and Tâ€™Pol was sitting calmly on a tall chair. Trip looked up hopefully as he heard Phlox approach while Tâ€™Pol maintained her usual look of absolute composure. Phlox hung his head and said, â€œIâ€™m sorry. The captain flatlined several times. The damage to his heart was extensive and after the fifth time flatlining, we couldnâ€™t bring him back.â€

Tears filled Tripâ€™s eyes as he said, â€œAre you trying to tell me that Jonâ€™s dead? He canâ€™t be dead!â€

Phlox blinked sadly, came over, and said, â€œI am afraid that the Captain really is dead, Commander.â€ Trip gave a small wail of despair as tears trailed down his face â€“ tears of both anger and sadness. How can a doctor as talented as Phlox just lose a patient like that? Trip asked himself silently in anger. And yet as soon as the thought had formed in his mind, he regretted thinking it. Phlox did all that he could. He chastised himself gently. Interrupting Tripâ€™s thoughts, Phlox said, â€œTâ€™Pol, you need to announce to the ship that the Captain has died. You are, of course, in charge of the ship now.â€ Now the task lay before Tâ€™Pol of telling the crew that their captain had died. She turned to leave. "T'Pol!" Trip called, looking up at her with teary eyes, "Use human words."


End file.
